Enamored To A Fool (3 page)

Furrowing his brows, Axle looked at Foster's eyes. “I wasn’t hurt, my brother was.”

Sighing, Foster went on, “Yeah, Axle, you were. From what you said, you’ve got wounds that are new and old. Why don’t you take this time to find who you are? Not who you’re afraid of becoming. Trust me, there’s a difference. You fear becoming your dad so much, you have no idea who you really are. And without knowing that, you could fall very much in the same pathway that led to you being tied to the tree.”

Axle turned and stepped away. “I don’t get it. I never talk to anyone like this. I’m here five minutes and dropping all my personal biz to you. It’s freaking me out.”

Shrugging, Foster responded, “Sometimes, humans view the fae in different ways. Maybe, you see me as someone you can confide in. Someone you are comfortable with. I don’t know. I’m not much of a talker either and feel like I’ve been questioning you under the hot lamps.”

Laughing, Axle glanced over his shoulder. “You didn’t even need them. I spilled them like I shotgunned sodium pentothal.”

Foster had spent enough time in the mortal realm to know what that was. Not as much as his brother but quite a bit of time nonetheless.

He kind of thought that Axle would be a little more resistant to him. There was no way Foster would put his guard down, though. However, he knew for a fact that the stuff Axle had revealed was truth. It was the darkness that was extinguishing the light in him.

Axle definitely needed to be here. Maybe, his brother hadn’t completely fucked up. Deep down, Foster was happy to have Axle here, too. Even with all the prickles and thorns, Foster was fascinated and attracted to him. Axle wasn’t the only one acting strangely.

Shaking out of his thoughts, he answered, “Come on. I think you should take a small nap, and then, we’ll go and meet the Seelie court.”

Foster handed Axle a huge mug of water before tucking him into bed with fresh sheets, since the old ones were wet. Finally, after the man drank his water and closed his eyes, Foster went to sit at his wood table and began to read. He would never admit that he spent more time looking at Axle than he did at the words on the page.

Upon waking up for the second time that day, Axle was aware that his hangover was almost gone and that he was still in what Foster called the fae land or something like that. He was pretty sure he remembered everything. The last couple hours seemed to have passed by in a fog, but he knew this was not the kidnapping he thought it was.

He must have the worst case of Stockholm’s to not only think that his captor was extremely hot, but also that this was something that was actually good for him. He had ugh…shared his feelings.

Plus, Axle felt for the first time in his life that he might have been removed from a bad situation. A situation that he should have controlled and taken ownership of, but in the end, the things he had done to survive had towed him into a dark abyss.

Sitting up, Axle scrubbed a hand over his face. trying to get reoriented. A sloshing sound right in front of him had Axle sitting back to see a mug thrust into his face.

“Thank you,” Axle mumbled, taking the mug from Foster who nodded and walked away.

Axle brought the mug to his lips, and the cool liquid made a path down his parched throat. God, this was the best-tasting water he had ever had. He took great gulps until he'd emptied the mug then looked around for more. Foster was generous enough to bring him two more cups.

“We need to go see Queen Titania now. I’ve delayed this as long as I could. At least you don’t look like mortal road kill now.” Foster wore a pair of green swim trunks and began donning his bow and quiver of arrows.

Yesterday, the look would have seemed odd, but now, it seemed fitting of Foster. Axle glanced around, wondering if he would enjoy living this rustic life like Foster or if he would like something more like the modern conveniences he was used to.

Foster opened up the door to his home…hut… whatever you call it, and Axle followed him out. The sun was piercing through the beautiful foliage. Without the haze of alcohol buzzing through his system, he got his real first look at the place to which he'd been brought.
Fuck, I must have fallen down the rabbit hole here.

Trees that were so beautiful, they damn near shimmered under the golden rays bordered the pathway of their journey. The scent of the forest had Axle taking in deep breaths just so he could get a lungful of the good stuff. Animals made a musical chorus that would probably make a composer weep. Axle had never felt so out of place in his life. He felt like a tarnished penny.

Following behind Foster, Axle kept turning to get a look at the giant lake that stood in the center of a world that was so breathtaking, he couldn’t help but stare, even while stumbling over the vines on the ground. On the side of the lake that he was closest to, he got the distinct impression of stepping from fall to summer in an instant. The leaves were bright colors, and then, after about a hundred more yards, a green so rich that Axle wasn’t even sure he had ever seen the shade so vibrant. It was that stunning. Turning back, he noticed across the lake a large black castle surrounded by snow and ice. The place looked hauntingly beautiful.

The sounds of pop music filled the air, making Axle’s eyes go wide.
What in the hell?
They broke through the forest and onto a beach that was filled with people. All of them scantily clad in various-colored bathing suits. That didn’t seem so bad, but they were just so…damn happy that it made him feel like ants were crawling all over his skin. The music made him want to cover his ears.
Is that a hot dog stand?

Axle felt a headache coming on. He rubbed his temples. Then suddenly, Foster grabbed him by the elbow, leading him over to a large cabana where the most beautiful woman he'd ever set eyes on sat on a lounge chair in a gold two-piece bathing suit.

“Foster, what is this thing?” The lady curled her lip at him.

Axle was about to tell her exactly who he was when Foster stepped in front of him. “My Queen, a message from the Unseelie court.” Foster handed her the note that had been pinned to him. Axle leaned to the side to watch her read the note, her face appearing to get angrier as she mouthed the words at a second passing.

“Is this a joke?” The queen threw the note on the ground. Ouch, Axle knew he was a hot mess, but he wasn’t that bad.

“No, Queen Titania. It seems the Unseelie have taken on a changeling and…” Foster cleared his throat. “Given us this one.” At least Foster had the decency to look guilty as the rest of the court gasped in shock.

Hey!
It wasn’t like he was a fungus or anything.

Titania got up and walked over to him. “He’s a disaster! Just look at him. He’s already one damn foot in the door to Unseelie. Why did they give us…
him
?” She said with disdain.

“Seems his brother went to the Unseelie. Puck took him and is keeping him for himself.” Foster adjusted the quiver on his back and rolled his neck.
Is this as tense for Axle as it is for me?

Queen Titania's brows drew down. “Puck kept his brother, you say?”

“Yes, My Queen.”

The queen walked over to Axle and scrutinized him. She was so close to him that he could feel her warm breath kiss his face. Strangely, the smell of jasmine hit him at the same time. Axle became dizzy and swayed a little before catching himself. This lady had a fucking scary effect on him.

Titania grabbed him by the chin, her gold eyes seemed to pierce him and delve into his very soul. He felt naked before this woman and didn’t like it one bit. The urges to shove her away and at the same time submit to her warred inside him.

“There’s not much light left of you, human. It’s buried so deep, I’m not sure you’ll be able to cope with this court. But I’ll give you one chance, but if you fuck up…I’ll kill you,” she murmured before pushing his chin away.

Okay, now, he had to deal with a crazy bitch as well as being kidnapped. “If you could just get me and my brother back home…” Axle began trying to reason with her.

“No. You won’t be leaving here. You belong to the Seelie now.” Titania sat back down in her lounge chair, and a tiny speck of a girl came over with a goblet, handing it to her before…
fuck
… flying away.

Axle tried to reason with the lady…queen…whatever. “Look, you and I both know that I don't fit in this place,” Axle waved his hand around the ridiculous-looking beach scene. “Why don’t we save each other a great big damn headache and help get my ass out of here…please?”
Sheesh, it was hard to tack that last part on.

Titania raised a delicate brow toward him. “No. Learn to adapt or die. It really is no headache on my part. You act like an ass, I’ll kill you. You treat my people disrespectfully, I’ll kill you.” Titania leaned forward. “You talk back to me one more time and you won’t draw breath again.”

Titania gold eyes blazed, and Axle knew that she wasn’t fucking around anymore. Step one toe out of line and this lady would end him. Period. Axle rubbed his face, at a loss as to what to do. His life was no longer his own, and that was not sitting well with him. In fact, he was so pissed right now, he was visibly shaking. But there was also a draw to staying in this place. Too bad it was in the forest with the sexy green-haired man. This beach gave him the heebie jeebies.

“Where do you want him to live? I can take him there.” Foster asked the queen.
So eager to get away from me, darling? I thought you wanted to help?

Queen Titania shrugged. “He’ll live with you.”

“What?” Foster shrieked. “There’s no room.”

Axle burst out laughing.

“This isn’t funny,” Foster snarled. “We’ll be crawling all over each other.”

Axle thought it was pretty damn funny. Green couldn’t get rid of him fast enough, and now, his queen was sticking him with Axle. They were either going to drive each other crazy or fuck one another silly. The smile slipped right off Axle’s face at that thought.

He shouldn’t be thinking like that. He had been kidnapped, his brother was hurt, and now, he was in a place from which he could never return home, yet he was thinking with his dick. Frowning, he glanced down, feeling like he hadn’t changed a bit. He was scum.

Looking up, Axle noticed Titania and Foster in a heated discussion that couldn’t quite reach his ears. Hell, he knew what they were talking about…him. The boil on the ass of society. Rubbing his neck, he wished there was some way that he could just have a do-over of his life. Not his whole life, just the last couple years when he took a nosedive like you wouldn’t believe. Hell, he'd thought that Foster was even being kind to him that morning. But in front of the court, the fae didn’t want anything to do with him. Story of his life.

Foster came over, only looking a little bit more relieved.

What did I miss?

“Come on. It seems you’re going to be my ward for a while.”

“You’ll thank me,” Titania called out.

Foster snarled at her and yanked Axle onto the beach where there was a volleyball game going on.
Could this place be anymore cheesy? Seriously?

There is no way he would ever fit in with these people. He glanced over at Foster incredulously. “This isn’t going to work.”

Foster shook his head. “Out of our hands. When the queen makes a decision, you listen. I’m going to need some…help.” Foster gritted with his teeth.

“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”

“I don’t like people helping and especially being near my home.”

Axle rolled his shoulders. “Hey, if you want me to stay somewhere else—”

Foster cut him off. “No, you’re staying with me.” He snarled. “It’s just…my accommodations aren’t what you’re used to. I want to make it a little easier on you.”

Axle was taken aback by that little piece of information. So, Foster didn’t want him to disappear. He just didn’t want the 1950s beach partiers to help him expand Foster's home to make it better for Axle. Hell, he liked Foster’s place just the way it was. If he had to climb over the damn man…oooh that was so appealing. They weren’t going to change the place one fucking bit.

He was about to respond, but he felt something hit the back of his head, knocking him forward.
What in the…

Turning, he saw the volleyball roll away. Growling, Axle rubbed the back of his head while listening to Foster laugh his ass off. Axle was about to lay into him when he glanced over at Foster and was shocked by the man. He was stunning with his green-haired head tilted back toward the sun. Dimples displayed on his cheeks and brilliant light blue eyes sparkled with mirth. His laughter was like music to Axle’s dead soul.

What was left of Axle’s pissed-off attitude dwindled down to nothing as he got a good look around. He tried to see past the cheesiness of the place and look at the fae. It was going to take a long time to work that one out in his head.

He had never been around a group of people like this in his life. They all seemed so…merry. Axle’s entire life had been around drunks, full of abuse and people that preferred the night instead of the light of day.

Fuck, he was actually feeling sweat build up on his brow, and it had nothing to do with the warm summer breeze. Axle was way out of his element. He wanted to change, shape up and get his life back together, but he doubted this was the place for him to do it. He was trying to see all the good that was there for him, but he didn’t feel like this was right either.

Axle opened his mouth and closed it, then opened it again.
Shit, I feel like I am drowning here.
He walked swiftly to where they'd come from.
Hell, am I having a panic attack?
Reality was sinking in, and he felt so off-kilter. He wasn’t sure if he was ever going to get his footing again.

Running was his only option, and he took off to the woods. He soon felt the leaves beneath him begin to crunch as the area changed to fall. Axle had never been much of a runner, and he had been treating his body like shit for the last two years. Soon, he was huffing and puffing. Bending over, he tried to catch his breath. Out, he needed out.